The skin acts an a protective barrier from the external environment. When damaged, a cascade of events is triggered to repair to the damaged tissue. Wound healing is a complex process, progressing through four stages (inflammation, proliferation, remodeling, and epithelialization) to repair the damaged area. Although wound healing is a natural process, disruption of the events involved may lead to incomplete healing and further damage to the tissue. Current methods of treating wounds include applying a dressing to the wound to stem bleeding, prevent infection and encourage healing. Wound dressings are often made from breathable material (for example, gauze). Occlusive dressings have been used on wounds, but the effects of occlusion on wounded skin are not completely understood (see e.g., Leow and Mailbach; J Dermatol Treat, (1997) 8, 139-142).
However, current methods of using occlusion on wounded skin is unsatisfactory because current occlusive dressings are not durable, convenient, or long lasting. Moreover, some current occlusive coverings require subjects to wrap plastic around the area to be treated, lowering subject compliance because the treatment is cumbersome and uncomfortable. Lastly, current occlusive coverings do not permit the exposure of the wound to the environment to be modulated based upon the nature of the wound. For example, current occlusive dressings are designed to exclude both air and water, and generally it is not possible to permit exposure to one and not the other.
Headaches cause pain in the head and neck and arise from a myriad of causes. While most are not life-threatening, headaches can be very painful and debilitating. Headache remedies include from over the counter analgesics, prescription medications, acupuncture and massage.
The commercially available polymer materials used in therapeutic products today do not necessarily provide the elasticity, environmental resistance and skin adhesion for long lasting product performance nor do they provide the aesthetic feel and appearance required by the consumer of therapeutic products.